Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget; Horseshoe Crab and Cooperative Fish Tagging Programs, 39267-39270 [2023-12786]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 115 / Thursday, June 15, 2023 / Notices
speaker. Meeting materials will be
posted by August 1, 2023, at https://
www.usfa.fema.gov/nfa/about/board-ofvisitors.html.
Eriks J. Gabliks,
Superintendent, National Fire Academy,
United States Fire Administration, Federal
Emergency Management Agency.
[FR Doc. 2023–12810 Filed 6–14–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111–74–P
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND
URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR–7071–N–02]
60-Day Notice of Proposed Information
Collection: Property Disposition
Foreclosure Sale Bid Kit; OMB Control
No.: 2502–NEW
Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Housing—Federal Housing
Commissioner, HUD.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
HUD is seeking approval from
the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for the information collection
described below. In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is
requesting comment from all interested
parties on the proposed collection of
information. The purpose of this notice
is to allow for 60 days of public
comment.
SUMMARY:
DATES:
Comments Due Date: August 14,
2023.
Interested persons are
invited to submit comments regarding
this proposal. Written comments and
recommendations for the proposed
information collection can be sent
within 60 days of publication of this
notice to OIRA_submission@
omb.eop.gov or www.reginfo.gov/public/
do/PRAMain. Find this particular
information collection by selecting
‘‘Currently under 60-day Review—Open
for Public Comments’’ or by using the
search function. Interested persons are
also invited to submit comments
regarding this proposal by name and/or
OMB Control Number and can be sent
to: Colette Pollard, Reports Management
Officer, REE, Department of Housing
and Urban Development, 451 7th Street
SW, Room 8210, Washington, DC
20410–5000; telephone 202–402–3400
(this is not a toll-free number) or email
at Colette.Pollard@hud.gov for a copy of
the proposed forms or other available
information.
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Colette Pollard, Reports Management
Officer, REE, Department of Housing
and Urban Development, 451 7th Street
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:54 Jun 14, 2023
Jkt 259001
SW, Washington, DC 20410; email
Colette Pollard at Colette.Pollard@
hud.gov or telephone 202–402–3400.
This is not a toll-free number. HUD
welcomes and is prepared to receive
calls from individuals who are deaf or
hard of hearing, as well as individuals
with speech or communication
disabilities. To learn more about how to
make an accessible telephone call,
please visit https://www.fcc.gov/
consumers/guides/telecommunicationsrelay-service-trs. Copies of available
documents submitted to OMB may be
obtained from Ms. Pollard.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice informs the public that HUD is
seeking approval from OMB for the
information collection described in
Section A.
A. Overview of Information Collection
Title of Information Collection:
Property Disposition Foreclosure Sale
Bid Kit.
OMB Approval Number: N/A.
OMB Expiration Date: N/A.
Type of Request: New Collection.
Form Number: Attachment B
Acknowledgment By Bidder Unsub and
Attachment G Certificate of Substantial
Repair Requirements.
Description of the need for the
information and proposed use: The
foreclosure sale bid kit is necessary for
the successful high bidder to submit in
order to apply and be approved to
become the new owner of the foreclosed
property.
Respondents: High Bidder for each
sale conducted, Business or other forprofit, Not-for-profit institutions and
State, Local or Tribal Government.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 10
per year, 1 per sale.
Estimated Number of Responses: 10
per year, 1 per sale.
Frequency of Response: 1 per
respondent.
Average Hours per Response: .15
hours.
Total Estimated Burden: For agency
<10 hrs/for public 1 hour.
B. Solicitation of Public Comment
This notice is soliciting comments
from members of the public and affected
parties concerning the collection of
information described in Section A on
the following:
(1) Whether the proposed collection
of information is necessary for the
proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the
information will have practical utility;
(2) The accuracy of the agency’s
estimate of the burden of the proposed
collection of information;
PO 00000
Frm 00049
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
39267
(3) Ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) Ways to minimize the burden of
the collection of information on those
who are to respond; including through
the use of appropriate automated
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology, e.g., permitting
electronic submission of responses.
HUD encourages interested parties to
submit comment in response to these
questions.
C. Authority
Section 3507 of the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507.
Jeffrey D. Little,
General Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office
of Housing.
[FR Doc. 2023–12830 Filed 6–14–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210–67–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–R5–FAC–2023–N046;
FXFR13350500000/234/FF05F24400; OMB
Control Number 1018–0127]
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Submission to the Office of
Management and Budget; Horseshoe
Crab and Cooperative Fish Tagging
Programs
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of information collection;
request for comment.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we,
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service), are proposing to renew an
information collection without change.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to
submit comments on or before July 17,
2023.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and
recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent
within 30 days of publication of this
notice to https://www.reginfo.gov/
public/do/PRAMain. Find this
particular information collection by
selecting ‘‘Currently under Review—
Open for Public Comments’’ or by using
the search function. Please provide a
copy of your comments to the Service
Information Collection Clearance
Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
MS: PRB (JAO/3W), 5275 Leesburg Pike,
Falls Church, VA 22041–3803 (mail); or
by email to Info_Coll@fws.gov. Please
reference ‘‘1018–0127’’ in the subject
line of your comments.
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
15JNN1
39268
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 115 / Thursday, June 15, 2023 / Notices
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Madonna L. Baucum, Service
Information Collection Clearance
Officer, by email at Info_Coll@fws.gov,
or by telephone at (703) 358–2503.
Individuals in the United States who are
deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have
a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY,
TDD, or TeleBraille) to access
telecommunications relay services.
Individuals outside the United States
should use the relay services offered
within their country to make
international calls to the point-ofcontact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In
accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act (PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et
seq.) and its implementing regulations
at 5 CFR 1320.8(d)(1), all information
collections require approval under the
PRA. We may not conduct or sponsor
and you are not required to respond to
a collection of information unless it
displays a currently valid OMB control
number.
On February 10, 2023, we published
in the Federal Register (88 FR 8906) a
notice of our intent to request that OMB
approve this information collection. In
that notice, we solicited comments for
60 days, ending on April 11, 2023. In an
effort to increase public awareness of,
and participation in, our public
commenting processes associated with
information collection requests, the
Service also published the Federal
Register notice on Regulations.gov
(Docket FWS–R5–FAC–2023–0004) to
provide the public with an additional
method to submit comments (in
addition to the typical Info_Coll@
fws.gov email and U.S. mail submission
methods). We received the following
comments in response to that notice:
Comment 1: Electronic submission via
Regulations.gov (FWS–R5–FAC–2023–
0004–0002) received from Jean Publiee
on February 10, 2023, which did not
address the information collection
requirements.
Agency Response to Comment 1: The
commenter did not address the
information collection requirements. No
response required.
Comment 2: Electronic submission via
Regulations.gov (FWS–R5–FAC–2023–
0004–0003) received anonymously on
April 11, 2023, which did not address
the information collection requirements.
Agency Response to Comment 2: The
commenter did not address the
information collection requirements. No
response required.
Comment 3: Electronic submission via
Regulations.gov (FWS–R5–FAC–2023–
0004–0004) received from Amanda Day
on April 11, 2023:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:54 Jun 14, 2023
Jkt 259001
A letter was submitted with comment
3, addressing a few key points of the
horseshoe crab tagging program and
suggesting potential protocol revisions.
The commenter wrote that it was the
wrong time to terminate the crab tagging
program, in part because it is the only
mark-recapture effort that can provide
information on population and survival
estimates for horseshoe crabs. The
commenter suggested that we employ a
standardized protocol for data
comparability, select a minimum
number of beaches per State, conduct
tag recovery surveys, develop
datasheets, use online data entry, and
reconsider tagging by biomedical
companies.
Agency Response to Comment 3: We
appreciate the thoughtful response
regarding horseshoe crab tagging. Many
of the protocol suggestions are already
in place. We currently provide
datasheets to all interested tagging
partners and require tagging agencies/
groups to conduct resight surveys as
part of their agreement to participate in
the horseshoe crab tagging program.
Additionally, since we have added the
online method for tag reporting (at
fws.gov/crabtag), about 95 percent of all
tag returns are submitted this way. We
understand the concern over biomedical
companies tagging horseshoe crabs;
however, the data acquired by
biomedical companies tagging bled
horseshoe crabs has proven to be very
useful. It has helped us estimate
survival rates of bled crabs vs. unbled
crabs, a long-time management concern
over biomedical bleeding of horseshoe
crabs. As management continues to
refine best management practices for
biomedical bleeding, tagging data can
provide insight into the effectiveness of
those practices.
Comment 4: Electronic submission via
Regulations.gov (FWS–R5–FAC–2023–
0004–0005) received from the Delaware
Riverkeeper Network on April 12, 2023:
The Delaware Riverkeeper Network
(DRN) wrote a comment in support of
continuation of horseshoe crab tagging.
They assist with a current tagging
partner and believe the program is
useful in a number of ways, including
exposing members of the public to the
unique experience of working to help
manage horseshoe crabs via tagging. The
DRN suggested deploying additional
tags and also asked the Service to
consider the recent best management
practices for biomedical bleeding,
provided by the Horseshoe Crab
Recovery Coalition.
Agency Response to Comment 4: We
appreciate the kind words about the
tagging program and the volunteer
efforts by all those with DRN and
PO 00000
Frm 00050
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
associated tagging partners. At this time,
it would be difficult to provide more
tags to the American Littoral Society
(ALS; the tagging partner working with
DRN), because we have a limited budget
and already provide tags. Additional
tags result in higher costs, mainly
stemming from the associated rewards
associated with recaptures of those tags
by the public. We will continue to work
with the Atlantic States Marine
Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) and all
tagging partners to best determine the
proper distribution of tags along the
Atlantic Coast. Consideration of the best
management practices is outside of the
scope of response associated with this
information collection.
As part of our continuing effort to
reduce paperwork and respondent
burdens, we invite the public and other
Federal agencies to comment on new,
proposed, revised, and continuing
collections of information. This helps us
assess the impact of our information
collection requirements and minimize
the public’s reporting burden. It also
helps the public understand our
information collection requirements and
provide the requested data in the
desired format.
We are especially interested in public
comment addressing the following:
(1) Whether or not the collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
agency, including whether or not the
information will have practical utility;
(2) The accuracy of our estimate of the
burden for this collection of
information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
(3) Ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) How might the agency minimize
the burden of the collection of
information on those who are to
respond, including through the use of
appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology, e.g., permitting
electronic submission of response.
Comments that you submit in
response to this notice are a matter of
public record. We will include or
summarize each comment in our request
to OMB to approve this ICR. Before
including your address, phone number,
email address, or other personal
identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that
your entire comment—including your
personal identifying information—may
be made publicly available at any time.
While you can ask us in your comment
to withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
15JNN1
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 115 / Thursday, June 15, 2023 / Notices
cannot guarantee that we will be able to
do so.
Abstract: The Fish and Wildlife Act of
1956 (16 U.S.C. 742f) requires the
Department of the Interior to take steps
‘‘required for the development,
advancement, management,
conservation, and protection of fishery
resources.’’ In addition, the Endangered
Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531–
1544), the Wildlife Coordination Act (16
U.S.C. 661–666c), and the Anadromous
Fish Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 757a–
757g) each authorize the Department of
the Interior to enter into cooperative
agreements with stakeholders to protect
and conserve fishery resources. The
Service’s Maryland Fish and Wildlife
Conservation Office (MDFWCO) will
collect information on horseshoe crabs
and fishes captured by the public. Tag
information provided by the public will
be used to estimate recreational and
commercial harvest rates, estimate
natural mortality rates, and evaluate
migratory patterns, length and age
frequencies, and effectiveness of current
regulations.
Horseshoe crabs play a vital role
commercially, biomedically, and
ecologically along the Atlantic coast.
Horseshoe crabs are commercially
harvested and used as bait in eel and
conch fisheries. Biomedical companies
along the coast also collect and bleed
horseshoe crabs at their facilities.
Limulus amebocyte lysate, derived from
horseshoe crab blood, is used by
pharmaceutical companies to test
sterility of products. Finally, migratory
shorebirds also depend on the eggs of
horseshoe crabs to refuel on their
migrations from South America to the
Arctic. One bird in particular, the rufa
red knot (Calidris canutus rufa), feeds
primarily on horseshoe crab eggs during
its stopover. Effective January 12, 2015,
the rufa red knot was listed as
threatened under the Endangered
Species Act (79 FR 73706; December 11,
2014).
In 1998, the ASMFC, a management
organization with representatives from
each State on the Atlantic coast,
developed a horseshoe crab
management plan. The ASMFC plan
and its subsequent addenda established
mandatory State-by-State harvest quotas
and created the 1,500-square-mile Carl
N. Shuster, Jr., Horseshoe Crab
Sanctuary off the mouth of Delaware
Bay.
Restrictive measures have been taken
in recent years; however, populations
are increasing slowly. Because
horseshoe crabs do not breed until they
are 9 years or older, it may take some
time before the population measurably
increases. Federal and State agencies,
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:54 Jun 14, 2023
Jkt 259001
universities, and biomedical companies
participate in a Horseshoe Crab
Cooperative Tagging Program. The
Service’s MDFWCO maintains the
information collected under this
program and uses it to evaluate
migratory patterns, survival, and
abundance of horseshoe crabs.
Members of the public who recover
tagged crabs provide the following
information using Form 3–2310
(Horseshoe Crab Recapture Report):
• Tag number;
• Whether or not tag was removed;
• Condition of crab;
• Date captured/found;
• Crab fate;
• Finder type;
• Capture method;
• Capture location;
• Reporter information; and
• Comments.
Agencies that tag and release the crabs
complete Form 3–2311 (Horseshoe Crab
Tagging) and provide the Service with:
• Organization name;
• Contact person name;
• Tag number;
• Sex of crab;
• Prosomal width; and
• Capture site, latitude, longitude,
waterbody, State, and date.
At the request of the public
participant reporting the tagged crab, we
send data pertaining to the tagging
program and tag and release information
on the horseshoe crab tag that was
found.
Fish will be tagged with an external
tag containing a toll-free number for
MDFWCO. Tagged species of fish
include striped bass (Morone saxatilis),
Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser
oxyrinchus) and shortnose sturgeon
(Acipenser brevirostrum), northern
snakehead (Channa argus), and
American shad (Alosa sapidissima).
Members of the public reporting a tag
will be asked a series of questions
pertaining to the fish that they are
referencing. The Service uses the
following four forms to collect
information used by fisheries managers
throughout the Atlantic Coast,
depending on species:
• Form 3–2493, ‘‘American Shad
Recapture Report’’;
• Form 3–2494, ‘‘Snakehead
Recapture Report’’;
• Form 3–2495, ‘‘Striped Bass
Recapture Report’’; and
• Form 3–2496, ‘‘Sturgeon Recapture
Report.’’
American shad are tagged by the New
York Department of Environmental
Conservation (NYDEC), which retains
all fish tagging information. The public
reports tags to MDFWCO, who provides
information on tag returns to NYDEC.
PO 00000
Frm 00051
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
39269
Tag return data are used to monitor
migration and abundance of shad along
the Atlantic coast.
Northern snakehead is an invasive
species found in many watersheds
throughout the mid-Atlantic region. It
has been firmly established in the
Potomac River since at least 2004 and is
now in nearly every major Chesapeake
Bay tributary. Federal and State
biologists within the Chesapeake Bay
watershed have been tasked with
managing the impacts of northern
snakehead. Tagging of northern
snakehead is used to learn more about
the species so that control efforts can be
better informed. Tagging is also used to
estimate population sizes to monitor
trends in abundance. Recreational and
commercial fishers reporting tags
provide information on harvest rates
and migration patterns as well.
Striped bass are cooperatively
managed by Federal and State agencies
through the Atlantic States Marine
Fisheries Commission (ASMFC). The
ASMFC uses fish tag return data to
conduct stock assessments for striped
bass. The database and collection are
housed within MDFWCO, while the
tagging is conducted by State agencies
participating in striped bass
management. Without this data
collection, striped bass management
would likely suffer from a lack of
quality data. As required by Congress
under the Atlantic Striped Bass
Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 5151–
5158), striped bass tagging data is used
to manage the coast-wide stock.
Sturgeon are tagged by Federal, State,
and university biologists and
nongovernmental organizations along
the U.S. east coast and into Canada, and
throughout the United States and
Canada. Local populations of Atlantic
sturgeon have been listed as either
threatened or endangered since 2012,
and shortnose populations have been
listed since 1973. The information
collected provides data on tag retention
and sturgeon movement along the east
coast. The data are also used to address
some of the management and research
needs identified by amendment 1 to the
ASMFC’s Atlantic Sturgeon Fishery
Management Plan.
Data collected across these tagging
programs are similar in nature,
including:
• Tag number;
• Date of capture;
• Waterbody of capture;
• Capture method;
• Fish length, weight, and fate
(whether released or killed); and
• Fisher type (i.e., commercial,
recreational, etc.).
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
15JNN1
39270
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 115 / Thursday, June 15, 2023 / Notices
In addition, if the tag reporter desires
more information on their tagged fish or
wants the modest reward that comes
with reporting a tag, we ask their
address so that we can mail them the
information.
The public may request a copy of
Form 3–156 contained in this
information collection by sending a
request to the Service Information
Collection Clearance Officer (see
ADDRESSES).
Title of Collection: Horseshoe Crab
and Cooperative Fish Tagging Programs.
OMB Control Number: 1018–0127.
Form Number: Forms 3–2310, 3–2311,
and 3–2493 through 3–2496.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection.
Respondents/Affected Public:
Respondents include Federal and State
agencies, universities, and biomedical
companies who conduct tagging, and
members of the general public who
provide recapture information.
Total Estimated Number of Annual
Respondents: 2,026.
Total Estimated Number of Annual
Responses: 3,648.
Estimated Completion Time per
Response: Varies from 5 minutes to 95
hours, depending on activity.
Total Estimated Number of Annual
Burden Hours: 2,241.
Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary.
Frequency of Collection: Respondents
will provide information on occasion,
upon tagging or upon encounter with a
tagged crab or fish.
Total Estimated Annual Nonhour
Burden Cost: None.
An agency may not conduct or
sponsor and a person is not required to
respond to a collection of information
unless it displays a currently valid OMB
control number.
The authority for this action is the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).
Madonna Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2023–12786 Filed 6–14–23; 8:45 am]
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
BILLING CODE 4333–15–P
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:54 Jun 14, 2023
Jkt 259001
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Receipt of Incidental Take Permit
Application and Proposed Habitat
Conservation Plan for the Sand Skink;
Lake County, FL; Categorical
Exclusion
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request
for comments.
AGENCY:
We, the Fish and Wildlife
Service (Service), announce receipt of
an application from Park Square
Commercial (Fruitland Park
Apartments—Regent Street) (applicant)
for an incidental take permit (ITP) under
the Endangered Species Act. The
applicant requests the ITP to take the
federally listed sand skink (Neoseps
reynoldsi) incidental to the construction
of a residential development in Lake
County, Florida. We request public
comment on the application, which
includes the applicant’s proposed
habitat conservation plan (HCP), and on
the Service’s preliminary determination
that the proposed permitting action may
be eligible for a categorical exclusion
pursuant to the Council on
Environmental Quality’s National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
regulations, the Department of the
Interior’s (DOI) NEPA regulations, and
the DOI Departmental Manual. To make
this preliminary determination, we
prepared a draft environmental action
statement and low-effect screening form,
both of which are also available for
public review. We invite comment from
the public and local, State, Tribal, and
Federal agencies.
DATES: We must receive your written
comments on or before July 17, 2023.
ADDRESSES:
Obtaining Documents: You may
obtain copies of the documents online
in Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2023–0078;
at https://www.regulations.gov.
Submitting Comments: If you wish to
submit comments on any of the
documents, you may do so in writing by
one of the following methods:
• Online: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments
on Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2023–0078;
• U.S. mail: Public Comments
Processing, Attn: Docket No. FWS–R4–
ES–2023–0078; U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, MS: PRB/3W, 5275 Leesburg
Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041–3803.
PO 00000
Frm 00052
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Lindsay Needs, by U.S. mail (see
by telephone at 772–469–
4226, or via email at lindsay_needs@
fws.gov. Individuals in the United States
who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing,
or have a speech disability may dial 711
(TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access
telecommunications relay services.
Individuals outside the United States
should use the relay services offered
within their country to make
international calls to the point-ofcontact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the
Fish and Wildlife Service (Service),
announce receipt of an application from
Park Square Commercial (Fruitland Park
Apartments—Regent Street) (applicant)
for an incidental take permit (ITP) under
the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as
amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
The applicant requests the ITP to take
the federally listed sand skink (Neoseps
reynoldsi) incidental to the construction
and operation of a residential
development in Lake County, Florida.
We request public comment on the
application, which includes the
applicant’s habitat conservation plan
(HCP), and on the Service’s preliminary
determination that this proposed ITP
qualifies as low effect, and may qualify
for a categorical exclusion pursuant to
the Council on Environmental Quality’s
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) regulations (40 CFR 1501.4), the
Department of the Interior’s (DOI) NEPA
regulations (43 CFR 46), and the DOI’s
Departmental Manual (516 DM
8.5(C)(2)). To make this preliminary
determination, we prepared a draft
environmental action statement and low
effect screening form, both of which are
also available for public review. We
invite comment from the public and
local, State, Tribal, and Federal
agencies.
ADDRESSES),
[Docket No. FWS–R4–ES–2023–0078;
FXES11140400000–234–FF04EF4000]
SUMMARY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Proposed Project
The applicant requests a 5-year ITP to
take sand skinks via the conversion of
approximately 6.82 acres (ac) of
occupied nesting, foraging, and
sheltering sand skink habitat incidental
to the proposed construction and
operation of a residential development
on 38.09-ac on Parcel #s 16–19–24–
0001–000–00100, 10–19–24–0003–
0000–8300, 15–19–24–0002–0001–0200,
09–19–24–0400–045–00100, 09–19–24–
0400–045–00104, 09–19–24–0400–045–
00101, 09–19–24–0400–045–00102, and
09–19–24–0400–045–00103 in Sections
34 Township 3 South, Range 69 East,
Lake County, Florida. The applicant
proposes to mitigate for take of sand
skinks by purchasing credits equivalent
E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM
15JNN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 115 (Thursday, June 15, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39267-39270]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-12786]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R5-FAC-2023-N046; FXFR13350500000/234/FF05F24400; OMB Control
Number 1018-0127]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget; Horseshoe Crab and Cooperative Fish
Tagging Programs
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we,
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing to renew an
information collection without change.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before
July 17, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of
this notice to https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this
particular information collection by selecting ``Currently under
Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
Please provide a copy of your comments to the Service Information
Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB
(JAO/3W), 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803 (mail); or by
email to [email protected]. Please reference ``1018-0127'' in the
subject line of your comments.
[[Page 39268]]
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Madonna L. Baucum, Service Information
Collection Clearance Officer, by email at [email protected], or by
telephone at (703) 358-2503. Individuals in the United States who are
deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial
711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay
services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay
services offered within their country to make international calls to
the point-of-contact in the United States.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction
Act (PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and its implementing regulations at 5
CFR 1320.8(d)(1), all information collections require approval under
the PRA. We may not conduct or sponsor and you are not required to
respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently
valid OMB control number.
On February 10, 2023, we published in the Federal Register (88 FR
8906) a notice of our intent to request that OMB approve this
information collection. In that notice, we solicited comments for 60
days, ending on April 11, 2023. In an effort to increase public
awareness of, and participation in, our public commenting processes
associated with information collection requests, the Service also
published the Federal Register notice on Regulations.gov (Docket FWS-
R5-FAC-2023-0004) to provide the public with an additional method to
submit comments (in addition to the typical [email protected] email and
U.S. mail submission methods). We received the following comments in
response to that notice:
Comment 1: Electronic submission via Regulations.gov (FWS-R5-FAC-
2023-0004-0002) received from Jean Publiee on February 10, 2023, which
did not address the information collection requirements.
Agency Response to Comment 1: The commenter did not address the
information collection requirements. No response required.
Comment 2: Electronic submission via Regulations.gov (FWS-R5-FAC-
2023-0004-0003) received anonymously on April 11, 2023, which did not
address the information collection requirements.
Agency Response to Comment 2: The commenter did not address the
information collection requirements. No response required.
Comment 3: Electronic submission via Regulations.gov (FWS-R5-FAC-
2023-0004-0004) received from Amanda Day on April 11, 2023:
A letter was submitted with comment 3, addressing a few key points
of the horseshoe crab tagging program and suggesting potential protocol
revisions. The commenter wrote that it was the wrong time to terminate
the crab tagging program, in part because it is the only mark-recapture
effort that can provide information on population and survival
estimates for horseshoe crabs. The commenter suggested that we employ a
standardized protocol for data comparability, select a minimum number
of beaches per State, conduct tag recovery surveys, develop datasheets,
use online data entry, and reconsider tagging by biomedical companies.
Agency Response to Comment 3: We appreciate the thoughtful response
regarding horseshoe crab tagging. Many of the protocol suggestions are
already in place. We currently provide datasheets to all interested
tagging partners and require tagging agencies/groups to conduct resight
surveys as part of their agreement to participate in the horseshoe crab
tagging program. Additionally, since we have added the online method
for tag reporting (at fws.gov/crabtag), about 95 percent of all tag
returns are submitted this way. We understand the concern over
biomedical companies tagging horseshoe crabs; however, the data
acquired by biomedical companies tagging bled horseshoe crabs has
proven to be very useful. It has helped us estimate survival rates of
bled crabs vs. unbled crabs, a long-time management concern over
biomedical bleeding of horseshoe crabs. As management continues to
refine best management practices for biomedical bleeding, tagging data
can provide insight into the effectiveness of those practices.
Comment 4: Electronic submission via Regulations.gov (FWS-R5-FAC-
2023-0004-0005) received from the Delaware Riverkeeper Network on April
12, 2023:
The Delaware Riverkeeper Network (DRN) wrote a comment in support
of continuation of horseshoe crab tagging. They assist with a current
tagging partner and believe the program is useful in a number of ways,
including exposing members of the public to the unique experience of
working to help manage horseshoe crabs via tagging. The DRN suggested
deploying additional tags and also asked the Service to consider the
recent best management practices for biomedical bleeding, provided by
the Horseshoe Crab Recovery Coalition.
Agency Response to Comment 4: We appreciate the kind words about
the tagging program and the volunteer efforts by all those with DRN and
associated tagging partners. At this time, it would be difficult to
provide more tags to the American Littoral Society (ALS; the tagging
partner working with DRN), because we have a limited budget and already
provide tags. Additional tags result in higher costs, mainly stemming
from the associated rewards associated with recaptures of those tags by
the public. We will continue to work with the Atlantic States Marine
Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) and all tagging partners to best determine
the proper distribution of tags along the Atlantic Coast. Consideration
of the best management practices is outside of the scope of response
associated with this information collection.
As part of our continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent
burdens, we invite the public and other Federal agencies to comment on
new, proposed, revised, and continuing collections of information. This
helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements
and minimize the public's reporting burden. It also helps the public
understand our information collection requirements and provide the
requested data in the desired format.
We are especially interested in public comment addressing the
following:
(1) Whether or not the collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including
whether or not the information will have practical utility;
(2) The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection
of information, including the validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
(3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
(4) How might the agency minimize the burden of the collection of
information on those who are to respond, including through the use of
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g.,
permitting electronic submission of response.
Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of
public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request
to OMB to approve this ICR. Before including your address, phone
number, email address, or other personal identifying information in
your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--including
your personal identifying information--may be made publicly available
at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your
personal identifying information from public review, we
[[Page 39269]]
cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Abstract: The Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956 (16 U.S.C. 742f)
requires the Department of the Interior to take steps ``required for
the development, advancement, management, conservation, and protection
of fishery resources.'' In addition, the Endangered Species Act of 1973
(16 U.S.C. 1531-1544), the Wildlife Coordination Act (16 U.S.C. 661-
666c), and the Anadromous Fish Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 757a-757g)
each authorize the Department of the Interior to enter into cooperative
agreements with stakeholders to protect and conserve fishery resources.
The Service's Maryland Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office (MDFWCO)
will collect information on horseshoe crabs and fishes captured by the
public. Tag information provided by the public will be used to estimate
recreational and commercial harvest rates, estimate natural mortality
rates, and evaluate migratory patterns, length and age frequencies, and
effectiveness of current regulations.
Horseshoe crabs play a vital role commercially, biomedically, and
ecologically along the Atlantic coast. Horseshoe crabs are commercially
harvested and used as bait in eel and conch fisheries. Biomedical
companies along the coast also collect and bleed horseshoe crabs at
their facilities. Limulus amebocyte lysate, derived from horseshoe crab
blood, is used by pharmaceutical companies to test sterility of
products. Finally, migratory shorebirds also depend on the eggs of
horseshoe crabs to refuel on their migrations from South America to the
Arctic. One bird in particular, the rufa red knot (Calidris canutus
rufa), feeds primarily on horseshoe crab eggs during its stopover.
Effective January 12, 2015, the rufa red knot was listed as threatened
under the Endangered Species Act (79 FR 73706; December 11, 2014).
In 1998, the ASMFC, a management organization with representatives
from each State on the Atlantic coast, developed a horseshoe crab
management plan. The ASMFC plan and its subsequent addenda established
mandatory State-by-State harvest quotas and created the 1,500-square-
mile Carl N. Shuster, Jr., Horseshoe Crab Sanctuary off the mouth of
Delaware Bay.
Restrictive measures have been taken in recent years; however,
populations are increasing slowly. Because horseshoe crabs do not breed
until they are 9 years or older, it may take some time before the
population measurably increases. Federal and State agencies,
universities, and biomedical companies participate in a Horseshoe Crab
Cooperative Tagging Program. The Service's MDFWCO maintains the
information collected under this program and uses it to evaluate
migratory patterns, survival, and abundance of horseshoe crabs.
Members of the public who recover tagged crabs provide the
following information using Form 3-2310 (Horseshoe Crab Recapture
Report):
Tag number;
Whether or not tag was removed;
Condition of crab;
Date captured/found;
Crab fate;
Finder type;
Capture method;
Capture location;
Reporter information; and
Comments.
Agencies that tag and release the crabs complete Form 3-2311
(Horseshoe Crab Tagging) and provide the Service with:
Organization name;
Contact person name;
Tag number;
Sex of crab;
Prosomal width; and
Capture site, latitude, longitude, waterbody, State, and
date.
At the request of the public participant reporting the tagged crab,
we send data pertaining to the tagging program and tag and release
information on the horseshoe crab tag that was found.
Fish will be tagged with an external tag containing a toll-free
number for MDFWCO. Tagged species of fish include striped bass (Morone
saxatilis), Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus) and shortnose
sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum), northern snakehead (Channa argus),
and American shad (Alosa sapidissima). Members of the public reporting
a tag will be asked a series of questions pertaining to the fish that
they are referencing. The Service uses the following four forms to
collect information used by fisheries managers throughout the Atlantic
Coast, depending on species:
Form 3-2493, ``American Shad Recapture Report'';
Form 3-2494, ``Snakehead Recapture Report'';
Form 3-2495, ``Striped Bass Recapture Report''; and
Form 3-2496, ``Sturgeon Recapture Report.''
American shad are tagged by the New York Department of
Environmental Conservation (NYDEC), which retains all fish tagging
information. The public reports tags to MDFWCO, who provides
information on tag returns to NYDEC. Tag return data are used to
monitor migration and abundance of shad along the Atlantic coast.
Northern snakehead is an invasive species found in many watersheds
throughout the mid-Atlantic region. It has been firmly established in
the Potomac River since at least 2004 and is now in nearly every major
Chesapeake Bay tributary. Federal and State biologists within the
Chesapeake Bay watershed have been tasked with managing the impacts of
northern snakehead. Tagging of northern snakehead is used to learn more
about the species so that control efforts can be better informed.
Tagging is also used to estimate population sizes to monitor trends in
abundance. Recreational and commercial fishers reporting tags provide
information on harvest rates and migration patterns as well.
Striped bass are cooperatively managed by Federal and State
agencies through the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission
(ASMFC). The ASMFC uses fish tag return data to conduct stock
assessments for striped bass. The database and collection are housed
within MDFWCO, while the tagging is conducted by State agencies
participating in striped bass management. Without this data collection,
striped bass management would likely suffer from a lack of quality
data. As required by Congress under the Atlantic Striped Bass
Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 5151-5158), striped bass tagging data is
used to manage the coast-wide stock.
Sturgeon are tagged by Federal, State, and university biologists
and nongovernmental organizations along the U.S. east coast and into
Canada, and throughout the United States and Canada. Local populations
of Atlantic sturgeon have been listed as either threatened or
endangered since 2012, and shortnose populations have been listed since
1973. The information collected provides data on tag retention and
sturgeon movement along the east coast. The data are also used to
address some of the management and research needs identified by
amendment 1 to the ASMFC's Atlantic Sturgeon Fishery Management Plan.
Data collected across these tagging programs are similar in nature,
including:
Tag number;
Date of capture;
Waterbody of capture;
Capture method;
Fish length, weight, and fate (whether released or
killed); and
Fisher type (i.e., commercial, recreational, etc.).
[[Page 39270]]
In addition, if the tag reporter desires more information on their
tagged fish or wants the modest reward that comes with reporting a tag,
we ask their address so that we can mail them the information.
The public may request a copy of Form 3-156 contained in this
information collection by sending a request to the Service Information
Collection Clearance Officer (see ADDRESSES).
Title of Collection: Horseshoe Crab and Cooperative Fish Tagging
Programs.
OMB Control Number: 1018-0127.
Form Number: Forms 3-2310, 3-2311, and 3-2493 through 3-2496.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Respondents/Affected Public: Respondents include Federal and State
agencies, universities, and biomedical companies who conduct tagging,
and members of the general public who provide recapture information.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 2,026.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 3,648.
Estimated Completion Time per Response: Varies from 5 minutes to 95
hours, depending on activity.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 2,241.
Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
Frequency of Collection: Respondents will provide information on
occasion, upon tagging or upon encounter with a tagged crab or fish.
Total Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: None.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required
to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a
currently valid OMB control number.
The authority for this action is the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).
Madonna Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-12786 Filed 6-14-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P
